League of American Bicyclists - Advocacyhttp://www.bikeleague.org/league-vocabulary/advocacy
enCreating Resilience Through Biking & Housinghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/creating-resilience-through-biking-housing
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Federal News</div><div class="field-item even">Research/Policy</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><em><strong>In our <a href="http://bikeleague.org/sites/default/files/Winter_2015_magazine_web.pdf" target="_blank">Winter 2015 </a></strong></em><a href="http://bikeleague.org/sites/default/files/Winter_2015_magazine_web.pdf" target="_blank"><strong>American Bicyclist</strong></a><em><strong><a href="http://bikeleague.org/sites/default/files/Winter_2015_magazine_web.pdf" target="_blank"> magazine,</a> we spoke with Harriet Tregoning, the Director of the Office of Economic Resilience at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and a daily bike commuter, about the intersection of active transportation and affordable housing. This is our full interview, which was condensed for length in the magazine.</strong></em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">It’s Harriet Tregoning’s job to create opportunity. A bike commuter, Tregoning is the new Director of the Office of Economic Resilience at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. She comes to HUD after most recently serving as the director of the District of Columbia’s Office of Planning, spearheading several projects, including the implementation of the city’s bikeshare system. In her new role, Tregoning said her boss, HUD Secretary Julian Castro, likes to say HUD is the “department of opportunity.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">“Creating more opportunity -- that is the singular thing about our nation,” she said. “Our belief that we can come from very humble beginnings and achieve almost anything… So having transportation choice is a part of that.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">We spoke with Tregoning recently to talk about her new job, the intersection of transportation and housing, and, of course, her desire for a foldable helmet. (Seriously, she says, someone get on that).</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;"><img src="/sites/default/files/Harriet%202012_05_23_Climate%20Ride%20NYDC%202012_Day%205_0751.jpg" width="600" height="400" style="margin: 15px auto; display: block;" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">You’re currently the Director of Office of Economic Resilience at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) -- what is your day to day like?</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">Earlier in the administration, HUD provided about $250 million in grants to communities to do planning. This wasn’t associated with any particular program -- communities were encouraged to use it for multi-issue, multi-agency projects.. It’s a partnership for sustainable comms, collaborating with EPA, HUD and USDOT. For many communities, these issues come together. Transportation and housing in particular are very big issues. 143 places get grants from us. Many are entire regions, and might have dozens of communities who participate in the planning activity. We help those communities complete their plans and provide technical assistance. They are delivering all kinds of interesting products, including zoning code changes, finishing bike or ped master plans and more. Two of the biggest things grantees work on are economic development, making communities more economically competitive and inclusive. Transportation issues run in conjunction and many places realize that transportation choices are an important part of a competitive and inclusive economy.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">The other major thing is that my office helps to lead HUD’s involvement in the President’s climate action plan. For us that means working on energy efficiency and renewables in housing, both HUD-supported housing, like public housing, but also HUD-insured housing, buildings for which we might do FHA loans, HUD-assisted housing. It’s mostly multi-family.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">We work with private property owners, local governments, and public housing associations. We work on energy efficiency and retrofit buildings for energy efficiency. We work mostly on solar energy. The other half of that effort has to do with resilience. Climate change isn’t some future distant event -- we’re feelings the effects now. We help communities to understand and help us understand how the assets that we insure and those we invest in are resilient to future extreme weather events and sea level rise. The biggest thing with that now is a billion dollar natural disaster resilience competition. It’s a yearlong competition.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">A lot of these places are really focusing on including planning at the multi-jurisdictional level. We’re really looking at adding to their transportation choices. The Fairmont Line (indigo line) commuter line in Boston runs through a few communities that have highest African-American and highest Hispanic share of any neighborhood population in the Greater Boston area and there has been no transit service there. The commuter train runs through these communities but it doesn’t stop. There has been some effort now to realize new stops and stations on this commuter rail line that will now serve this community. Leaders are doing planning and preparation in the community to make sure poor households and small businesses there don’t end up getting pushed out because of the attractiveness of new transit project. Opening stations give critical access to jobs and opportunity to a very underserved population, but thoughtful way planning is happening and will be bulwark against displacement, which happens in some instances if communities aren’t thoughtful.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">Now, not everyone can afford to invest in heavy rail or even light rail infrastructure. Providence, Rhode Island, is making the most of a series of bus lines. They looked at the five most well-used routes and made land use changes and permanent artwork to create visibility and character around the spots on these bus stations to make them more substantial and also reflect the character of neighbors. They’re investing in bus ridership and increasing appeal and convenience of bus transit. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">In the Twin Cities they’re also focused on equitable transit-oriented development. Light rail is being constructed that would normally been very disruptive to businesses and users and the neighborhood in general, but they gave micro grants to local artists to help highlight businesses still working during construction to engage the community around the coming light rail. They also created permanent connections between the community of working artists and local businesses. That relationship continues for many of artists and businesses beyond the grant period. The arts are an important part of a local economy. There are any ways to mitigate the inconvenience of construction.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Bikes Plus: The 2015 National Bike Summit is looking at how bikes add value in so many ways. Instead of saying "Look at what the bike has done for us!" we're asking "How can the bike help you achieve your goals?" What role do bicycling and bike infrastructure play in economic development or resilience?</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">Bicycling for transportation is something that can be a lifelong activity. One of the things that will indicate whether or not we live longer, whether we age gracefully in good health or not is whether we’re getting activity as part of our daily lives and biking is a really excellent way to build physical activity, not necessarily strenuous, into daily life. I think that’s going to be increasingly important to us as society but also to individuals. Places where biking is possible are also places where walking is also very prevalent. Being able to bike and walk to meet your daily needs, which is guaranteed physical activity, is so critical.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">This also means the attractiveness of neighborhoods improves. It helps to revitalize neighborhoods. How much household income goes to transportation? It’s the second largest expense for a household, just behind housing. Depending on income, it can be as much or more than housing. If you live a long distance from your job and are spending a lot using and maintaining and paying off automobiles...</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Bicycling helps you to become a car-light household, or even car-free household. That greatly lowers the transportation expense. </span><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">It works in synergy with communities with a lot of transportation options.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">These are all very important pieces of infrastructure that make biking possible. When there is a critical mass of bicyclists and facilities, that’s important in terms of sharing the road and having a safe environment in which to bike. Everyone using the road should expect to see different users: cars, buses, pedestrians, bikes, street cars -- that’s the safest environment.</span></p>
<blockquote><p>It’s just so easy to go door to door on bike. I beat everybody to meetings. It’s very efficient. I love to be able to get out in middle of day and enjoy sunshine and breeze.</p>
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<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">These things do a lot for communities. The more choices you have, the more attractive it is to live in those places. Whether or not you are biking because you cannot afford alternative transport modes -- I bike because it is the fastest way for me to get from point A to point B, but I don’t consider myself a cyclist -- I’m a commuter. It’s just so easy to go door to door on bike. I beat everybody to meetings. It’s very efficient. I love to be able to get out in middle of day and enjoy sunshine and breeze. I can’t say a lot of people, as much as I like Metro, feel like, ‘Oh good, I get to go underground.’ It’s nice to have that bit of pleasure as part of my commute.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Looking at your time as the head of Planning in DC, can you talk broadly about what sorts of policies or leadership tactics worked for you and what didn’t? I'm curious how you built support for projects in the community. How do you enact a bold vision with resistance?</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">Everybody has an aspiration for their community and for their family or household. Understanding what those aspirations are is an important part of beginning a dialogue. We’re a city that’s gone through a lot of changes. In 2001 we still had a financial control board. Our finances had been in such abysmal shape we lost some elements of what little home rule we had because the federal government had to step in and address incredible budget difficulties. Figuring out a fiscally sound and even prosperous city meant having more people who work in the District live in the District. ⅔ of the population historically worked here but did not live here. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">We needed to get to historic levels of population in the city. For many people our growth and changes were about how do we make this a city that is attractive so we can retain residents that we have and attract people to move back who might have considered this city home.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">We had strengths: the transit system was already in place. We had decent bus service, a great urban form, great walkability, short blocks, a gridded network, great connectivity. So there were great strengths to build upon. Many places don't have these things. We wanted to be able to accommodate growth in the city, and the built form that we had wouldn’t accommodate the same level of population because households are occupying more space than they did in 1850. Household composition is now larger than what it was. That’s why we are seeing so many studios and 1 and 2 bedrooms -- it’s because we didn’t have much housing stock before.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">We started talking to people about why are we doing this. It’s not just because we love development or want greater height. Our self sufficiency and vitality depends on accommodating some amount of population growth relative to now. And to do it in way that does least damage to the character of our communities and neighborhoods. Some people are very afraid of change and may not have the broad perspective of what is in the best interest of the city. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">It’s important to talk to everybody.</span></p>
<p><strong>There have been a lot of stories and discussion, in DC and in other cities in the past few years, about this idea that bike lanes = gentrification to a neighborhood. Obviously there is a lot of nuance lost in that assumption, but what’s your take on how to overcome that premise? There are community groups working to move beyond this idea at a grassroots level, but do you have any big ideas on a larger scale in terms of community outreach on this? How should advocates work with the community toward a solution?</strong></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">On its face, it’s kind of ridiculous. Almost 40 percent of households in the District don't even have a single automobile. Just look at data for who bikes and walks. When people say this they mean, ‘I don't want change in my neighborhood.’ It’s not based on facts or reality. It’s a way to challenge changes to a neighborhood.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">How has your role changed coming from the city planning office to HUD? Any good lessons learned so far?</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">I worked at EPA before Planning, so I was federal and doing national policy work for a number of years and then worked as Planning Secretary in Maryland, then Planning Director in DC. In some ways I'm now so much better equipped to be doing anything at a national policy level, having a much deeper understanding of how states and localities do business. HUD is a great place for me because we do work directly with states and local communities. There is knowledge I have that I can bring to bear. I now work for a former mayor. Secretary Castro was mayor of San Antonio -- and he likes to say HUD is the department of opportunity. It focuses on the economic mobility of Americans. Creating more opportunity: that is the singular thing about our nation. Our belief that we can come from very humble beginnings and achieve almost anything. That’s his personal family story. So having these transportation choices is a part of that. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">What if you could pay for education instead of car insurance? There are many communities where there are no choices. In some places there is very little transit or if there is it is inconvenient and you might spend hours on transportation, which you wouldn’t have to do in another city to reach the same opportunities. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">Imagine if every community had those choices. We are helping communities offer these kind of choices. Cities have to do things that make sure housing is affordable. People bike and walk in all communities, even when it’s really taking your life in your hands. Providing opportunities is way to foster economic mobility. We don't do enough to guarantee housing affordability. Possibly that’s a lesson that we learned only by experience. A lot of the affordable housing is market rate affordability. What we’ve seen in the last dozen years is that when we start to invest in transportation choices, you see changes in property value. These are huge changes in some instances, unless you put measures in place to protect affordability for the population that's there. This is why so many communities are trying to do planning and put in zoning and guarantees that will enable investments to be made and communities to prosper.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">What role do advocates for more bikeable and walkable places have in affordable housing? What do you see as the the connection point or area of collaboration there? What are the policies advocates should be pushing for in that realm?</span></strong></span></p>
<blockquote><p>Poor people walk and bike the most, so if you’re an advocate for biking and walking, you are an advocate for low-income housing.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">They should absolutely be working hand in hand. Poor people walk and bike the most, so if you’re an advocate for biking and walking, you are an advocate for low-income housing. You’re already natural allies. Even improvements in walkability, changes in zoning that give choices, and bike facilities can affect housing prices. These advocates should be working closely on to make sure we have permanently affordable housing working with infrastructure improvements.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong>If it was your job to increase the number of people biking, would you work in housing? Land use and zoning? Transportation?</strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">I think what people neglect most is land use. If there is no destination within biking distance or walking distance, you can create the facility, but there’s not really a ‘how’ or ‘why’ people would use it.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">A functioning transportation system has to have connecting destinations. Getting land use right is incredibly important. And there are many issues involved. It’s a public safety issue: With more people on the streets, creating safety in all kinds of neighborhoods is a very positive thing. If you were concerned with crime, that this is a great strategy to be working together with land planning agency on places to take steps to improve public safety.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">Not everyone is willing to try bicycling as young men at age 25. We have so many costumes for our sports -- people think it’s an athletic activity. I never shower after I ride. I realize that may not be true for everybody, but, largely, you don't need special clothing or gear. I’d certainly advise visibility but its transportation. It’s not required to be athletic. Bicycling really is lifelong type of transportation that you can do your whole life.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">People need to know that it’s an evolution. As cars see more bikes and pedestrians, they will respond accordingly.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Do you have any big ideas that you’re working on now at HUD that might relate to this conversation?</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">I’m very proud of the bikeshare system we launched here in DC. Bikeshare has become a gateway for bicycling for people who hadn’t been biking before. It makes it possible for you to be a bicyclist in almost any city that you go to. But, and there’s a big ‘but’ here, we have a bit of a digital divide, whether we’re talking bikeshare or car-sharing, like Zipcar, or Uber. It’s credit card enabled. A lot of our more low-income households do not have access to credit. This creates an unfair divide and exacerbates disparities that are already going on. This is an essential service as opposed to a discretionary good. It needs to be fixed.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: medium; line-height: 1.538em; font-family: georgia, palatino;">I also wish someone would invent the foldable bike helmet. One that could put in a briefcase and whip out when you need it. I know there are some things out there but something you can just unfold and put on your head. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Many, many American cities, DC among them, is on the path to provide better and safer facilities and more choices. And part of what it’s doing is making almost every neighborhood in the city more convenient, with more amenities and choices. This has been a really great thing for the city. You don’t have to go back very far to the middle of the last decade and that just wasn’t the case. It’s also great for cities to see that this low-cost infrastructure can really give everybody more choice and more opportunity.</span> </span></p>
<p><a href="http://bikeleague.org/join" target="_blank"><em><strong><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: medium;">Want to get American Bicyclist magazine in your mailbox? Become a League member today!</span></strong></em></a></p>
</div></div></div>Thu, 05 Feb 2015 19:13:25 +0000Liz Murphy5056 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/creating-resilience-through-biking-housing#commentsOpening Salvo in Highway Funding Fighthttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/opening-salvo-highway-funding-fight
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">National Bike Summit</div><div class="field-item even">Federal News</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><img src="/sites/default/files/Bike-Lane-Ends-Sign-K-6427_0.gif" width="282" height="282" style="float: right; margin: 10px 15px;" />Kicking bicyclists, pedestrians, and transit users out of federal transportation programs is the solution to an insolvent Highway Trust Fund — according to a coalition of 50 traditionally conservative think-tanks and policy groups.</p>
<p><a href="/sites/default/files/1-28-15-Gas-tax-hike-Coalition-Letter.pdf">In a sign-on letter issued yesterday</a>, this influential and well-connected group proposed eliminating funding for all non-motorized and transit projects and programs rather than raising the gas tax to bail out the chronically insolvent Highway Trust Fund — the mechanism by which funding is collected and distributed for transportation investments as prescribed by the transportation bill Congress is supposed to pass every now and then.</p>
<p>This scorched-earth proposal would eliminate the ability of local transportation agencies to invest in their own transportation priorities and lock us all into a 1950’s–style highway- and car-only mentality that flies in the face of common sense — not to mention economics and what the free market and simple demographics have been telling us for years.</p>
<p><strong>People want choice, and bicycling, walking and transit are critical elements of a balanced transportation system that is in the best interests of the nation.</strong></p>
<blockquote><p><strong>We have the opportunity to deliver our message, loud and clear, at <a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit">the National Bike Summit, March 10-12</a>. It’s more than just an opportunity to speak up — it’s our responsibility.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>A gas tax increase is presented by these groups as a regressive and ineffective tax on lower- and middle-class Americans. Are there equity issues in raising the gas tax? Of course, especially given the fact that those 1950’s policies have locked so many people in so many communities into a costly, car-dependent lifestyle that forces many families to spend more of their household income on owning and operating a car than they spend spend on food or housing.</p>
<p>However, the reality is that an increase of 8 cents per gallon in the gas tax would burden individuals with an average of just $25 per year — $42 a year for families — while potentially helping to fund an investment in decently maintained roads that might prevent some or all of the $370 per year American families spend on pothole-induced car repairs! That increase also pales in comparison with the 50 cents <strong><em>per trip</em></strong> increase in transit fares that have been common across the board in communities across the country.</p>
<p>The groups behind this sign-on letter are influential, especially with the new Republican-controlled Congress that is already debating and holding hearings on the next transportation bill that requires action before the end of May. Investing in a transportation system and basic infrastructure that’s relevant to the needs of the 21st Century economy should not be a partisan issue, clouded by counter-productive dogma, or disingenuously argued on the back of struggling working class Americans who are already paying over the odds for basic transportation needs as a result of 50 years of short-sighted investment decisions.</p>
<p>What all Americans deserve is a well-maintained transportation system in their community with choices and options relevant to their daily travel needs, their health, their environment, and their pocket book. That means increasing investment in maintaining the existing infrastructure and continuing to invest in the full range of transportation option including bicycling, walking and transit.</p>
<p><strong>We have the opportunity to deliver that message, loud and clear, together with our friends in the transit, walking and local government communities at <a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit">the National Bike Summit, March 10-12</a>. Because honestly, it’s more than just an opportunity to speak up — it’s our responsibility.</strong></p>
<p>So, if you were wondering whether coming to Washington D.C. matters any more, take a moment to think about a future where there are no more trails, sidewalks or bike lanes — green or otherwise — in our communities. Where the issue isn’t “is there a bike rack on my bus” but “is there a bus.” Where bicycling and walking are deliberately left out of street designs even though we know that will make those roads more dangerous.</p>
<p>If proposals to kick bicycling, walking and transit out of the federal transportation program go unanswered and unchallenged, that’s the future we will suffer.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit"><strong>Register for the Summit today — early registration rates end January 31.</strong></a></p>
</div></div></div>Thu, 29 Jan 2015 19:04:05 +0000Andy Clarke5047 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/opening-salvo-highway-funding-fight#commentsSummit Big Idea: A Digital Advocacy Networkhttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/summit-big-idea-digital-advocacy-network
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">National Bike Summit</div><div class="field-item even">Local and State Advocacy</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><img src="/sites/default/files/Mychal.Tetteh.jpg" width="290" height="395" style="float: right; margin: 10px 15px;" /></p>
<p>For Mychal Tetteh, the old adage proved true: Necessity is the mother of invention. Portland may be his hometown, but when he started as the Executive Director of the <a href="http://www.communitycyclingcenter.org/">Community Cycling Center</a> in 2013, he felt like he was working from a disjointed map, an incomplete playbook on how to make streets safer in his community.</p>
<p>"As soon as I got the job, I wanted to know everything," he recalled. "From a regional standpoint, I wanted more complete information. I wanted to know who all the stakeholders were, a categorical list of all the advocacy organizations and agencies and neighborhood institutions." He quickly discovered he wasn't alone.</p>
<p>"In my first 60 days, as I talked to active transportation advocates even <em>they</em> weren't positioned to know where to go, who to ask, when the meeting was and why it was important," he said. "And these are people whose job, all or part of their day, is advocacy. Even they don’t have the information they need to be optimally effective. That’s a problem."</p>
<p>A problem that Community Cycling Center decided to fix.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.communitycyclingcenter.org/index.php/an-update-on-avenues-to-advocacy/"><em>Avenues to Advocacy</em></a> is a new, online tool that centralizes the type of information that advocates and everyday resident need to take action for active transportation. <strong>And we're excited that Tetteh will presenting this Big Idea at the <a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit">National Bike Summit </a>in March.</strong></p>
<p>I had the chance to chat with Tetteh last week, and he described Avenues to Advocacy as "a huge bit of network infrastructure that’s been missing in our ability to be effective advocates." The new resource allows the bike movement to capitalize on the proliferation of data and the ability of technology to knit it together in ways that can increase public access and transparency.</p>
<p>Tetteh's vision: "With this platform, I'll be able to find relevant people; download or look at a curated calendar of everything related to transit, biking or pedestrian advocacy or other hashtags that are generated; see here’s everywhere the regional government is engaged or city government is engaged."</p>
<p>"We’re considering it to be content clearinghouse and organizational kind of Facebook," he added. "A tri-modal platform, where you can click on or click off functions that are relevant to you — and at the same time get challenged to engage outside of your silo. I can see it as a way that everyday people can connect on these issues and a platform that gives experts the opportunity to answer questions at once." </p>
<p>At its foundation, that's what Avenues is all about: Breaking down silos. It aims to build bridges, not only between transportation modes, but among organizations, government agencies and neighborhood groups. It cultivates the human infrastructure (<a href="http://bikeleague.org/content/womens-forum-recap-adonia-lugo-bike-justice-and-human-infrastructure">hat tip to Adonia Lugo</a>) and advocacy network that's so critical to creating community change.</p>
<p>"Rather than trolling through the bottom section of commentary on a bicycle blog, which can be divisive, you can go into a demilitarized zone and get simple information from a tool," Tetteh said. "And the target on this floats. It starts where the need is greatest — the active transportation advocates and organizations that are already engaged. That’s the low-hanging fruit. But I can imagine a tech savvy person in any community that’s been historically underrepresented using this and being on a level playing field with everyone else. The target floats from those we know want it to those most likely to need it as their opportunity to engage around active transportation."</p>
<p><a href="http://vimeo.com/111871550"><img src="/sites/default/files/Screen%20Shot%202015-01-19%20at%2010.44.43%20AM_0.png" width="699" height="393" style="margin: 10px auto; display: block;" /></a>But surely such tech solutions are far too costly and out of reach for a local nonprofit, right? Not when you use volunteers and convene collective efforts, like a hackathon, to make it happen. And, because it's being built by the community, the team has been mindful that many low-income folks aren't connecting to the internet on home computers. "We’re making sure it will be mobile friendly, because many people spend the majority of their screen time on mobile devices," Tetteh said. Right now, the tool is about two-thirds complete — click the photo above to get an <a href="http://vimeo.com/111871550">inside look from the recent hackathon</a> — and Tetteh is confident that, even after its release, Avenues will be an invention that continues to grow and evolve in new and necessary directions.</p>
<p>"The information is increasingly available, the technology is increasingly approachable and we’re applying best practices as best we can within the niche of active transportation advocacy," he emphasized. "Even if it just starts a conversation, people are going to realize something’s missing. If we don’t call it out, we won’t know it’s missing. Hopefully, we’ll be able to have an open source model that we’ll be able to share for other cities."</p>
<p><a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit"><em><strong>Be part of this exciting conversation— register for the Summit and learn more from Tetteh, March 10-12, in Washington, D.C.</strong></em></a></p>
<p> </p>
</div></div></div>Sun, 18 Jan 2015 14:03:02 +0000Carolyn Szczepanski5037 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/summit-big-idea-digital-advocacy-network#commentsSummit Preview: The Power of the Peoplehttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/summit-preview-power-people
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">National Bike Summit</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p class="normal"><em><strong>In our September-October 2014 issue of American Bicyclist, we heard from the Cascade Bicycle Club on their innovative Advocacy Leadership Institute. Cascade will be presenting on the ALI in March at the 2015 National Bike Summit. Read more about their efforts below, and be <a href="http://www.bikeleague.org/summit" target="_blank">sure to register for the Summit today!</a></strong></em></p>
<p class="normal"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">The Seattle region has long been a great place to ride, but we’re entering the biggest boom for bicycling we’ve ever seen. Emerald City Cycle Share is launching in September, bike commute numbers are skyrocketing, and an updated Bicycle Master Plan was recently approved. Excitement and enthusiasm are overflowing from every neighborhood — and, to enhance our advocacy, we want to harness that enthusiasm to help drive policy and infrastructure changes.</span></p>
<p class="normal">That’s why, in 2011, the Cascade Bicycle Club created our Advocacy Leadership Institute (ALI). Building on Cascade’s mission of improving lives through bicycling, ALI trains passionate people from across the Puget Sound Region to effectively organize in their communities and advocate for better bike plans, effective policies and safer infrastructure. We knew we were onto an innovative idea, but the results have exceeded even our expectations, with graduates going on to start new bicycling organizations, be featured in national news outlets like Al Jazeera, serve on bike advisory boards and even manage Puget Sound Cycle Share.</p>
<p class="normal"><img src="/sites/default/files/BenP1010946_0.JPG" width="700" height="525" style="margin: 15px auto; display: block;" /></p>
<p class="normal">So how does it work? Well, we offer two types of programs for students throughout the year: our intensive 10-week ALI courses in the spring and fall, and four shorter Advocacy Boot Camp courses in the summer and winter.</p>
<p class="normal">The 10-week ALI program begins with a retreat giving participants the opportunity to get to know each other and weekly guest speakers introduce participants to a range of important power brokers, from city planners and elected officials, to media members and industry partners. Through the training, students learn the skills to develop successful campaigns — and use those skills to dive into weekly workshops and class assignments based on the region’s priority infrastructure projects.</p>
<p class="normal">Understanding that many community members can’t dedicate 10 weeks, Advocacy Boot Camp is an opportunity to provide key training and resources in TK amount of time. Boot Camp can also serve as an advocacy appetizer or provide brush up skills for our ALI alums. Boot Camp focuses on specific priority projects and the tactics that are currently being used in the field.</p>
<p class="normal">Graduates of ALI are an invaluable asset to Cascade and the region. With the skills and knowledge to organize, advocate and hold decision-makers accountable, ALI graduates have become the leading advocates for bicycling and walking in their neighborhoods and cities. And because we’re training community members — parents, teachers, doctors, students, business owners — our graduates are even more connected to and invested in making sure our streets are safe for all ages and abilities.</p>
<p class="normal">We’re very clear that there’s a place for all types of bicycling advocates in the ALI program. Ann DeOtte Kaufman, a 2013 ALI graduate, is the founder of Iva Jean — a clothing line dedicated to creating fashionable and functional women’s bike clothes — and has used her skills to advocate for getting residents of <em>all</em> backgrounds to embrace bicycling. Merlin Rainwater, a 2012 ALI graduate, has gone on to spearhead the Safe Routes to Health initiative focused on engaging hospitals and healthcare facilities in making sure patients, visitors and staff can walk, bike or take transit safely.</p>
<p class="normal">"​ALI transformed me from an individual passionate about biking to an engaged member of an active and effective community​ passionate about biking,” Rainwater says. “Every day I see the results of our collective action in safer streets and smiling people on bikes."</p>
<p class="normal">Other ALI graduates have gone on to lead local bicycling advocacy groups and engage hundreds in local advocacy initiatives, as well. Glen Buhlmann, of Kirkland Greenways; Janet Schull, of Walk Bike Burien; and Don Brubeck, of West Seattle Bike Connections, are just a few examples of ALI in action — and groups that continue to work with and support Cascade’s regional work in policy, funding and infrastructure.</p>
<p class="normal"><img src="/sites/default/files/IMG_1898.JPG" width="700" height="459" style="margin: 15px auto; display: block;" /></p>
<p class="normal">“I had always been passionate about affecting change in transportation safety for bicycling and walking — but I struggled to find the most effective way to make a significant impact,” Buhlmann says. “ALI gave me both the skills I needed to be an effective advocate and exposed me to a large group of people who could help me focus and amplify my advocacy efforts.” </p>
<p class="normal">Not only have graduates created campaigns and organizations together, but they’ve also created friendships. Perhaps the most important benefit of the ALI program is the relationships students build with other passionate people who share their vision for a great community. Yes, we’re building infrastructure in the Puget Sound Region, but we’re also building a community and culture that is accepting, focused and outrageously fun<em>.</em></p>
</div></div></div>Fri, 02 Jan 2015 14:42:11 +0000Liz Murphy5026 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/summit-preview-power-people#commentsPoll: Broad Support for Bike/Ped Investmentshttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/poll-broad-support-bikeped-investments
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Federal News</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><em><strong><img src="/sites/default/files/SGR%20trail-3961_0.jpg" width="350" height="233" style="margin: 15px; float: right;" />This post originally appeared on the Rails-To-Trails Conservancy's <a href="http://www.railstotrails.org/trailblog/2014/december/10/poll-reveals-broad-support-for-federal-investment-in-biking-and-walking/" target="_blank">blog</a>. It's written by Kevin Mills, RTC's Senior Vice President of Policy and Trail Development.</strong></em></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">For those of you who have ever worked to get a trail, greenway, bike path or sidewalk built, you know that it is no easy task.</span></p>
<p>But of all the obstacles our community faces, the one that poses the greatest threat to trails comes from elected officials who claim that investing in biking and walking infrastructure is a frivolous use of public funds.</p>
<p>In recent years, biking and walking infrastructure has become a popular target for some federal lawmakers looking to gain political points by highlighting their fiscal conservatism. The perceived political wisdom was that their constituents felt the same way—that federal funds should not be spent on biking and walking.</p>
<p>But no one had asked them. So we did.</p>
<p>In September, RTC engaged leading Republican and Democratic pollsters to find out what likely 2016 voters for both parties really thought about the federal role in encouraging active transportation. The survey reached a proportion of Republican and Democratic voters that matched the national voting population, and was rigorously designed and vetted to ensure scientific accuracy.</p>
<p>The remarkable findings serve as a warning to opponents of federal walking and biking investment that such a political strategy will put them at odds with the people they represent.</p>
<p>We now know that four times as many voters favor increasing or maintaining current levels of federal investment in walking and biking paths as decreasing them (74 percent – 19 percent) and that strong majorities support this funding regardless of political affiliation.</p>
<p>The poll findings will be an important tool for trail builders and supporters as we continue to fight back attacks to trail funding.</p>
<p>With a new federal transportation bill due to be negotiated in 2015, it is vitally important that the messages contained in these poll findings are broadly heard.</p>
<p>We encourage you to download the poll findings and additional resources below and to share them with supporters, opponents, decision-makers and the general public in your community.</p>
<ul><li><a title="2014 National Transportation Poll" href="http://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/2014-national-transportation-poll/">The Poll Summary</a> – A handy two-page PDF with key findings and implications for policy-making</li>
<li><a title="2014 National Transportation Poll Toplines" href="http://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/2014-national-transportation-poll-toplines/">The Full Topline Survey</a> – A deeper dive into the data</li>
<li><a title="2014 National Transportation Poll Presentation" href="http://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/2014-national-transportation-poll-presentation/">The Presentation</a> – Created by the Republican and Democratic pollsters on survey highlights</li>
<li><a title="Cross-party Poll Finds Voters Want Bike/Ped Investments" href="http://www.railstotrails.org/resource-library/resources/cross-party-poll-finds-voters-want-bikeped-investments/">The Press Release</a> – A summary of the poll plus comments from RTC</li>
</ul><p><em>Photo by Alan Crawford</em></p>
</div></div></div>Thu, 11 Dec 2014 15:36:58 +0000Liz Murphy5012 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/poll-broad-support-bikeped-investments#commentsElection Analysis: What's Next for Biking?http://www.bikeleague.org/content/election-analysis-whats-next-biking
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Federal News</div><div class="field-item even">Research/Policy</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;"><img src="/sites/default/files/Screen%20Shot%202014-11-24%20at%201.25.41%20PM_0.png" width="400" height="299" style="margin: 25px; float: right;" />The Nov. 4 midterm election saw a major shake up in Congress -- and there are still several local, state and federal run-off elections looming in its wake. Earlier this month, I discussed what these results mean for biking at the state and federal levels. You can flip through my slides <a href="/sites/default/files/Fed_policy_update_11_10.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">So what's next? Here are the key takeaways from this month's elections -- and what to watch for in the next several months.</span></p>
<p><strong>At the state and local level</strong></p>
<ul><li><strong>Ballot initiatives on the local level</strong>: 2/3 of all local transportation ballot initiatives passed, and 70 percent of measures that included transit funding passed. This shows a continued willingness of Americans to tax themselves for transportation.</li>
<li><strong>Ballot initiatives on the state level</strong>: The majority passed, but none of these measures actually raised new money. It raises the question of whether support for tax increases for transportation start to fall off at the state level.</li>
<li><strong>State Houses</strong>: Republicans gained almost 350 seats in state houses andgovernorships nationwide. Currently there are 30 states where both chambers of the state legislature are controlled by Republicans -- in 11 states both chambers are controlled by Democrats.</li>
</ul><p><strong>At the federal Level</strong></p>
<ul><li>Despite changes in Congress, the No. 1 issue remains the same: Congress still needs to figure out how to fund transportation before a long term transportation bill can pass.</li>
<li>The two committees charged with finding funding, the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee are likely to debate the question, “Why is bike infrastructure eligible for transportation funding when bicyclists don’t pay in?”</li>
<li>The House Transportation Committee will continue to be led by Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA), who continues to value bipartisan cooperation.</li>
<li>The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will now be led by Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK). Inhofe does not support dedicated funding for biking and walking in the federal transportation bill, but in 2012 he did craft a deal with Sens. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Thad Cochran (R-MS) to include local control over transportation alternatives funds. </li>
</ul><p><em><span style="line-height: 1.538em;"><strong>Disclaimer</strong>: It's important to acknowledge that bicycling has always had both Democratic and Republican champions. However, opposition to bicycle friendly policies and investment at the federal level has come from Republican leadership.</span></em></p>
</div></div></div>Mon, 24 Nov 2014 18:47:58 +0000Caron Whitaker4998 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/election-analysis-whats-next-biking#commentsSpeedy Road Design Undermines Safetyhttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/speedy-road-design-undermines-safety
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Research/Policy</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><em><strong style="line-height: 20.0063037872314px;">This guest post comes to us from Chris McCahill, a senior associate with the <a href="http://www.ssti.us/" target="_blank">State Smart Transportation Initiative.</a></strong></em></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Despite gradual improvements, the U.S. is </span><a style="line-height: 1.538em;" href="http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/pub/pdf/14IrtadReport.pdf">falling behind</a><span style="line-height: 1.538em;"> its peers in terms of traffic safety. Making matters worse, our nation’s most vulnerable road users—pedestrians and cyclists—make up a growing share of traffic fatalities in recent years. In response, the U.S. DOT has made bicycle and pedestrian safety a </span><a style="line-height: 1.538em;" href="http://www.dot.gov/briefing-room/us-transportation-secretary-foxx-announces-new-initiative-enhance-pedestrian-and">high priority</a><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">, state laws are beginning to address the needs of non-motorized road users, and many cities are installing new bike facilities and stepping up traffic enforcement.</span></p>
<p>All of this, however, is being done within a framework that has for decades prioritized high-speed travel—arguably one of the greatest obstacles to pedestrian and cyclist safety.</p>
<p><img src="/sites/default/files/Madison_E_Washington_0.jpg" width="500" style="margin: 15px auto; display: block;" /></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">This prioritization of speed has played out in many ways, but particularly in the design process. The conventional approach encourages engineers to design roads for higher speeds than drivers are actually meant to travel (through the use of a </span><em style="line-height: 1.538em;">design speed</em><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">). This often leads to more gradual curves and wider roadways with fewer objects near the edges, which make it easier for drivers to travel fast. More recent design guidelines, however, recommend setting a low design speed, sometimes called a </span><em style="line-height: 1.538em;">target </em><em style="line-height: 1.538em;">speed</em><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">, and using design cues to promote low-speed travel wherever it makes sense to do so. Many cities and a few states have begun to recognize and adopt these newer guidelines, but there’s still a long way to go before low-speed design is a common practice, rather the exception.</span></p>
<p><strong style="line-height: 1.538em;">The highway mentality</strong></p>
<p>The conventional approach to road design grew out of an era when the nation was building thousands of miles of rural highways connecting its major cities, on which drivers could travel faster than ever before. To accommodate this, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) recommended, until quite recently: “every effort should be made to use as high a design speed as practical.” This approach, sometimes called “forgiving design,” ensures that drivers can see far ahead and makes it less likely that they’ll run off the road or into oncoming traffic, even if they briefly lose control.</p>
<p>While this approach has helped reduce the number of crashes on highways in rural areas, it has also become a common practice in urban areas and in places with high levels of non-motorized road users. This ultimately encourages high-speed travel in locations where speed poses <a href="http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/2014/05/20/dangerous-by-design-2014-highlights-preventable-pedestrian-fatalities/">serious risks</a>: narrowing drivers’ fields of vision, making it difficult for them to react quickly, and drastically increasing the risk of injury to someone who is struck. As the League <a href="http://bikeleague.org/content/new-report-every-bicyclist-counts">reported</a> earlier this year, a majority of cyclist deaths now occur on urban arterials, which are systematically designed for high speeds but often run through areas with lots of activity and various kinds of roads users.</p>
<p><strong>Emerging best practices</strong></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Fortunately, nearly every professional design organization now recognizes that higher design speeds are not always appropriate for every location. In 2004, AASHTO published </span><em style="line-height: 1.538em;">A Guide for Achieving Flexibility in Highway Design</em><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">—a companion to their preeminent design guide (the “Green Book”)—which states:</span></p>
<p>"Given the historic equating of design speed with design quality, the notion of designing a <em>high-quality</em>, low-speed road is counter-intuitive to some highway engineers. Yet it is in many cases the appropriate solution to a sensitive neighborhood or other street design problem. The severity of pedestrian crashes, a significant concern in urban areas, is greatly increased as speeds increase."</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">The most recent Green Book, published in 2011, also alludes to a more nuanced approach in how design speed should be used, stating that on “lower speed facilities, use of above-minimum design criteria may encourage travel at speeds higher than the design speed." </span></p>
<p>In the past decade, other professional organizations have produced their own guidelines that address the design speed issue explicitly. For example, in its 2010 publication, <a href="http://ecommerce.ite.org/IMIS/ItemDetail?iProductCode=RP-036A"><em>Design Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach</em></a><em>, </em>the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), recommends using a target speed, which it defines as “the highest speed at which vehicles should operate on a thoroughfare in a specific context.” It also calls speed “the most influential design control, and the design control that provides significant flexibility in urban areas.” The National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) also encourages the use of target speed in its <a href="http://nacto.org/usdg/"><em>Urban Street Design Guide</em></a>.</p>
<p><strong>Reforming design standards</strong></p>
<p>Many cities and a growing number of states have begun to endorse these newer guidelines. This is important because it signals to designers that they should have those guides on hand and know how to use them, but it is only a first step. Unfortunately, the official standards in many states still discourage or preclude low-speed design. In 2010, the <em>ITE Journal </em><a href="http://trid.trb.org/view.aspx?id=1085159">reported</a> that 12 states recommend using design speeds that are five to ten miles per hour above the posted speed limit, while 24 states require a minimum of 11-foot wide lanes and six states require 12-foot lanes. These standards generally apply on all state roads and are often adopted by local agencies.</p>
<p> Reforming design standards can be a major undertaking, particularly at the state level, but a handful of agencies have proven that it can be done. In 2006, the Massachusetts DOT published a completely revised <a href="http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/highway/DoingBusinessWithUs/ManualsPublicationsForms/ProjectDevelopmentDesignGuide.aspx">design guide</a> that explains: “the design speed should be a logical one with respect to the target speed and existing operating speed.” In 2008, the DOTs from New Jersey and Pennsylvania jointly published the <a href="http://contextsensitivesolutions.org/content/reading/dots_release_smart_transportation_guidebook/"><em>Smart Transportation Guidebook</em></a>, which recommends choosing a “desired operating speed,” similar to a target speed, that should “for most roadway types be the same as the design speed, and also the same as the posted speed.”</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">In addition to treating design speed differently, these guidelines give engineers greater flexibility and encourage them to think about roadways as more than conduits for high-speed vehicle movement. In each case, the new guidelines eliminated key obstacles to creating safer, lower-speed roads. Moreover, agencies interested in reforming their own guidelines can now turn to those involved in earlier efforts for guidance and inspiration.</span></p>
</div></div></div>Thu, 06 Nov 2014 21:24:39 +0000Darren Flusche4985 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/speedy-road-design-undermines-safety#commentsElection Day: What's at Stake for Bicycling?http://www.bikeleague.org/content/election-day-whats-stake-bicycling
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Federal News</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <div>
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<p>Election Day is here, and we've got the breakdown on what's at stake for bicycling at the ballot box.</p>
<p>In the U.S. Senate, a change of party control, which is looking likely, could spell trouble for bicycling at the national level. Here's why:</p>
<ul><li><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">We could be looking at a May 2015 vote to cut funding for bike projects and removed eligibility for bike and pedestrian facilities from the transportation bill</span></li>
<li>Senate allies have successfully fought off amendments and legislative maneuvers on this in 2009, 2011 and 2012</li>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">If Republicans have more than 55 seats, bicycling priorities will liekly face some opposition, and many of bicycling's strongest champions in the Senate will no longer be heading up the important committees making the decisions</span></li>
</ul><p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">So why does control of the Senate matter?</span></p>
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<ul><li><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) will become chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, the lead committee for setting transportation policy. He's made his distaste for funding bicycling and walking projects clear, and he'd be well positioned to kill the Transportation Alternatives program. TAP is a major resource for state and local leaders to implement biking and walking initiatives.</span></li>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) would become chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which is responsible for funding the transportation bill. He's been open about disapproving of Highway Trust Fund money being used for transportation other than highways, including bike infrastructure.</span></li>
<li><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">On a positive note, if the Republicans take over control of the chamber, Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) will chair the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, which writes the detailed budget for federal agencies. Cochran is one of the top allies to bicycling in the Senate, and he will be in a key position to push back against anti-bike efforts.</span></li>
</ul><p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;"><img src="/sites/default/files/Screen%20Shot%202014-11-04%20at%202.37.29%20PM.png" width="500" style="margin: 15px auto; display: block;" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em>Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) received a Leadership Award from the League in 2012 for his leadership on bicycling issues in the Senate.</em></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">In the U.S. House, we're keeping our eye on a few key seats. Here's what's at stake:</span> </p>
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<ul><li>The Transportation Committee currently has 59 members, 33 Republicans and 27 Democrats.</li>
<li>Depending on a few key elections, the committee make up could change to 35 Republicans and 25 Democrats, meaning, in most votes, six Republicans would have to vote for biking initiatives. What's more, Rep. Tom Petri (R-WI) and Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC) are retirning from office, two of bicycling's top Republican allies in the House. </li>
<li>While these could be tough losses, Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA) will likely remain chair of the Transportation &amp; Infrastructure Committee. He's fostered a spirit of bipartisanship and open dialogue in the committee.</li>
</ul><p>We may not know the full results of this election for months, but we'll have a sense of where things are going. Starting tomorrow, we'll start to learn more about the new members of Congress and their connections to bicycling. If you have a new Representative or Senator, please share any insight to their transportation positions, or relationship to bicycling. Over the past two years, we've <a href="http://bikeleague.org/sites/default/files/Sept-Oct2014-WEB.pdf" target="_blank">seen a number of new champions and allies in Congress</a> -- and we look forward to working with you to gain new champs in this Congress.</p>
<p><strong>Don't forget: The <a href="http://bikeleague.org/summit" target="_blank">National Bike Summit</a> is a great opportunity to educate these new legislators on the benefits and support for better bicycling!</strong></p>
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</div></div></div>Tue, 04 Nov 2014 16:57:49 +0000Caron Whitaker4983 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/election-day-whats-stake-bicycling#commentsBike Researchers: Safety Report 'Misleading'http://www.bikeleague.org/content/bike-researchers-safety-report-misleading
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Research/Policy</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><em><strong>The Governors Highway Safety Association <a href="http://www.ghsa.org/html/media/pressreleases/2014/20141027bikes.html" target="_blank">released</a> a new report on bicyclist safety this week, and we <a href="http://bikeleague.org/content/govs-highway-safety-assoc-youre-your-own" target="_blank">responded</a> with concern over the report's conclusion that bicyclists' safety is not a national issue. We weren't the <a href="http://www.bikewalkalliance.org/news/433-why-the-news-reports-about-bicycling-fatalities-arent-quite-right" target="_blank">only</a> <a href="http://usa.streetsblog.org/2014/10/28/despite-ghsa-claims-the-bike-boom-has-been-fantastic-for-bike-safety/" target="_blank">ones</a> concerned. So we asked researchers and authors of City Cycling, John Pucher of Rutgers University, and Ralph Buehler, of Virginia Tech University, what they thought of this new report. Here's their take. </strong></em></p>
<p style="line-height: 20.0063037872314px;"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">As authors of the recently published book “City Cycling” by MIT Press, we disagree with some of the main conclusions reached by the Governors Highway Safety Association in their report “Bicyclist Safety.” The claim that bicycling has become much more dangerous is based on only data from 2010 to 2012 and is extremely misleading. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 20.0063037872314px;"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Using official data from the US Department of Transportation, the total number of bike trips more than tripled from 1,272 million in 1977 to 4,081 million in 2009. <img src="/sites/default/files/Screen%20Shot%202014-10-29%20at%202.57.04%20PM.png" width="300" style="margin: 15px; float: right;" />During the same period, the number of cyclist fatalities fell from 922 in 1977 to 628 in 2009, a decrease of 32%. Taking into account the increased level of cycling, the cyclist fatality rate fell by a dramatic 79%. In short, cycling has become roughly four times safer per bike trip over the past three decades. </span></p>
<p style="line-height: 20.0063037872314px;"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Thus, even official U.S. Department of Transportation statistics completely contradict the conclusion reached by the Governors Highway Safety Association report. Simply examining the extremely short 2-year period from 2010 to 2012 is statistically unjustified and distorts the overall message of the Governors report. Cycling has become much safer over the past three decades, not more dangerous.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Moreover, the report falsely claims that more widespread helmet use is the key to increasing cycling safety. Almost no one in the Netherlands and Denmark wears a safety helmet when cycling, not even children; yet, the cyclist fatality rate per bike trip is only about a tenth as high in the Netherlands and Denmark as in the USA, as we document in our “City Cycling” book for MIT Press (Ch. 2 and 7). Cycling is so safe in the Netherlands and Denmark because of much more extensive and better cycling infrastructure as well as dramatically lower speed limits for cars in residential areas. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">We agree with the Governors report that more should be done to reduce drunk driving by both motorists and bicyclists, and also with the suggestion to provide more separate cycling infrastructure for cyclists while reducing car speeds. But it is highly misleading for the report to suggest that cycling safety has gotten worse, on the basis of only two years worth of data. Likewise, we disagree that helmet laws are the key to improving cyclist safety. By far the most effective way to increase cycling safety is by improving motorist behavior, reducing car speeds, and providing more physical separation between cyclists and motorists by installed buffered bike lanes or fully separated cycle tracks, which have physical barriers between cyclists and motorists.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">Cycling in the United States has been getting safer over the past three decades. The Governors report does a disservice to public health as well as urban transportation by suggesting otherwise. We agree with the goal to make cycling even safer, but we disagree that requiring helmet use would be an effective way of doing that.</span></p>
</div></div></div>Wed, 29 Oct 2014 19:00:18 +0000Liz Murphy4968 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/bike-researchers-safety-report-misleading#commentsShow Off Your #IBIKEIVOTE Pridehttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/show-your-ibikeivote-pride
<div class="field field-name-field-category field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">Advocacy</div><div class="field-item odd">Take Action</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even" property="content:encoded"> <p><img src="/sites/default/files/dorothy_overlay.jpg" width="350" height="350" style="margin: 15px; float: right;" />Scores of you have already declared: I Bike, I Vote.</p>
<p>With Election Day just a week away, join us in recognizing that bikes bring us together, uniting us across political lines for a common bipartisan goal: Building a bicycle friendly America for everyone. Whether or not you bike to your polling place on election day, you are a citizen cyclist — and your values for safer streets makes a difference no matter who’s on the ballot. </p>
<p>This month, we launched a campaign -- I Bike, I Vote -- mobilizing Americans around the idea that when we bike and we vote, we advance our vision for safer, healthier, more connected communities. If you haven't already, get engaged by <a href="bit.ly/ibikeivote" target="_blank">joining our Action Alert</a> list so you can make a different with the click of your mouse when your voice counts at the local, state and federal level.</p>
<p><strong>Want to take it a step further? I</strong>nspire your family, friends, community and beyond by showing off your pride in your social media channel avatars. You can create an "I VOTE" image, like the one pictured here, with just a few simple steps. (We recommend using the Piclay app, but you can also create your own image with your own photo editing software or other mobile app).</p>
<h3>Here's how:</h3>
<p class="p1"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">1. Make sure you have a black and white picture (with yourself on a bicycle) ready to go on your phone’s camera roll</span></p>
<p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">2. Save the I VOTE png file of your color choice (<a href="/sites/default/files/I_Vote_blue_504px.png" target="_blank">blue</a> or <a href="/sites/default/files/I_Vote_red_504px_v2.png" target="_blank">red</a>) to your device's camera roll (right click, save as)</span></p>
<p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">3. Download the Piclay app to your phone or tablet (via <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/piclay-photo-editor.-blend/id630509137?mt=8" target="_blank">iTunes</a> or <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.piclay.ui&amp;hl=en" target="_blank">Google Play</a>)</span></p>
<p class="p3"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">4. Open Piclay on your mobile phone</span></p>
<p class="p1">5. Click “ENTER”</p>
<p class="p1">6. Click the icon on the lower left corner that looks like two pictures on top of each other</p>
<p class="p1">7. Click on “ALBUM” on the top</p>
<p class="p2"><span style="line-height: 1.538em;">8. Select the “I VOTE” photo and your black and white picture from your camera roll, then click “done”</span></p>
<p class="p1">9. Crop your black and white picture as desired, and just click “CROP” on the “I VOTE” picture to leave it as is</p>
<p class="p1">10. Adjust opacity to 100%, click checkmark in upper right hand corner of app</p>
<p class="p1">11. Click Save -- the image is saved to your camera roll!</p>
</div></div></div>Wed, 29 Oct 2014 18:24:41 +0000Liz Murphy4967 at http://www.bikeleague.orghttp://www.bikeleague.org/content/show-your-ibikeivote-pride#comments